Actions from Shannon PenceMovable Type Pro 4.382010-04-18T01:11:05Zhttp://www.kcet.org/user/profile/mt-cp.cgi?__mode=feed&_type=actions&username=shannompPosted Ventura Bus Routes Get Slashed to Dream Interruptedtag:kcet.org,2010:/socal/dream_interrupted//62.32392010-04-18T08:11:05Z2010-05-11T01:32:05ZDoes it seem like you've been waiting a long time for a bus to come along? Insufficient county and state funds have forced Ventura to cut some of the city's public transportation, and other communities could be next.Shannon Pencehttp://www.kcet.org/cgi-bin/mt/mt-cp.cgi?__mode=view&blog_id=616&id=147

These occasional flaws in the system are not unusual for Ventura County bus riders, said Overton, but starting this week public transit is going to be much more difficult for some riders, causing them to wait a lot longer.

Due to inadequate transportation funding, Gold Coast Transit, the local and intercity bus service for Ojai, Oxnard, Port Hueneme and San Buenaventura reduced its Route 16 service and cut its Route 6 midday services in half on Sunday.

The lack of transportation dollars are a result of factors plaguing not only Ventura County, but also the rest of the economically challenged state. California's current recession has greatly impacted the quarter-cent statewide sales tax that goes to fund all of California's public transit under the Transportation Development Act. In the last two and a half years Ventura County alone has seen a reduction of about 30 percent in TDA funding.

Different from the other Southern California counties, Ventura County is additionally challenged with transportation funding because it lacks a half-cent countywide sales tax (or in the case of Los Angeles county, three different half-cent sales taxes) that the other counties use to help fund public transportation.

"That's the political reality we have to deal with," said Darren Kettle, the Executive Director of the Ventura County Transportation Commission. "So it's a real difficult situation given that we don't have that extra money."

Due to the Budget Trailer Bill recently signed by Governor Schwarzenegger, the county will be receiving $4.8 million over the next couple of years from the State Transit Assistance fund, which will contribute to transit operational expenses. A large portion of this money will help pay for the county's Metrolink service, which until earlier this month was in jeopardy of being canceled.

The STA funding is a large reason why all Metrolink trains to west Ventura County weren't cut, said Kettle. But because STA funding is so volatile since the state legislature appropriates it, funding Metrolink could be an issue in the future. Although this would affect all Metrolink members, Ventura County would be in more of a predicament than the other counties because it doesn't have the extra countywide sales tax.

It could ultimately be an issue of bus transit service versus rail transit service, said Kettle.

The question really comes down to, "How are we going to pay for transit not only in Ventura County, but in the United States?" said Kettle. Gas taxes have typically funded transportation in this country, but gas taxes are a dwindling revenue stream for a variety of reasons, such as better fuel efficiency, and hybrid or alternative fuel vehicles.

So it's not just a countywide problem, "it's a nationwide problem," said Gold Coast Transit General Manager, Deborah Linehan, at a transit hall town meeting in Ventura last week.

Although Ventura and Ojai are currently the only cities in Ventura County that have either started or are in the process of instituting a bus reduction plan, more cuts are likely to come, as well as possible fare increases for bus and rail services.

"With the economy already as bad as it is, and some people desperate for public transportation in order to get to and from their jobs, the cuts and increased fares are just enhancing an already difficult time for many people," said Alyssa Thomas, a student at Ventura Community College who relies solely on public transportation.

For cities that have a higher ridership there may be a slight glimmer of hope on the horizon. The Ventura County Transportation Commission, under SB 716, is currently looking to reorganize the county's public transportation system and intends to submit a required consensus bill, outlining the county's new transportation model, by the end of 2011.

As of now, cities that don't use much public transportation are not meeting the state's 20 percent fare box recovery requirement, although they are receiving a fixed amount of funds for operational expenses, said Kettle. The new model would hopefully ensure that areas with higher ridership would receive funds commensurate with transit usage.

"It will be an embarrassment if we do not come up with a good consensus approach because we will have money going to communities to fund transit, but they don't have a transit need," said Kettle. "And that's where we have this disconnect, so hopefully, we're going to be able to get them connected."

But even if the Commission crosses that hurdle, Ventura County's transportation problems are likely not over.

"We still probably don't have enough to meet all the needs out there and to grow transit," said Kettle. "We will never lack for need in most cases in Ventura County, but we will lack for funding."

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Posted CSU Channel Islands Tries to Weather CSU's Budget Cuts to Dream Interruptedtag:kcet.org,2010:/socal/dream_interrupted//62.31322010-03-30T19:12:08Z2010-12-31T22:15:38ZBurdened by a $625 million cut in state funding, the CSU system has been forced to halt the growth of its youngest university, CSU Channel Islands. Shannon Pencehttp://www.kcet.org/cgi-bin/mt/mt-cp.cgi?__mode=view&blog_id=616&id=147

The 23rd and most recent of the Cal State Universities, CSU Channel Islands has felt the pain from a $625 million loss in state support the entire university system has suffered over the last couple of years. The system that serves almost 433,000 students and employs 44,000 faculty and staff members, has been forced to cut 40,000 students from its enrollment, increase student fees by 32 percent, as well as cut course offerings and enforce faculty layoffs and furloughs.

"So you have three really big things negatively impacting the educational experience in a university that's designed to give all members of California the opportunity to become educated and become the future of California's workforce, said Kevin Schallert," the student government president at CSU Channel Islands.

The budget problems and fee increases that have cut many students out of the CSU system run counter to the California Master Plan for Higher Education. It was created in 1960 with the sole intent to ensure higher education was available to everyone regardless of economic means. Other states have since modeled their university systems on California's plan because they found it worked well.

"North Carolina, and so forth, imitated the California Master Plan. The only difference is they're actually remaining faithful to it," said Stephen Lefevre, CSU Channel Islands associate vice president of academic programs and planning. "California has got to turn that around."

But with CSU Channel Islands alone dealing with a 12-14 percent budget cut and an inability to grow its student population, the current forecast doesn't look promising for California's higher education.

That is why Schallert, along with the other members of the California State Student Association, started a Made In The CSU campaign, which seeks to put numbers to the real value of the Cal State University.

"Showing that 64 percent of all nurses in California came out of the CSU can really quantify to members of the community and hopefully push for more funding," said Schallert. And increased funding and support from the state is exactly what CSU Channel Islands needs in order grow and better serve Ventura County and California's student population.

"The CSU is called the people's university because it focuses on access, affordability and quality, said Schallert. "The population that they really have served has historically been the underserved populations in California. So by serving these populations and giving individuals that have been previously disenfranchised in education, you are giving them a voice and the opportunity to contribute to their families, to the state and to the future."

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Posted Ventura Budget Cuts Burn Fire Dept to Dream Interruptedtag:kcet.org,2010:/socal/dream_interrupted//62.30332010-03-17T10:42:37Z2010-05-11T02:29:39ZReductions in operating funds at Ventura City's Fire Department may lead to the closure of a fire station and result in increased response times. That, say fire officials, could lead to loss of life.Shannon Pencehttp://www.kcet.org/cgi-bin/mt/mt-cp.cgi?__mode=view&blog_id=616&id=147

Budget cuts to a variety of services and programs in Ventura have been fairly obvious to much of the general public. Visiting the H.P. Wright Library is no longer an option since its closure last November. Traveling by bus is more strained since service frequency on bus routes has been reduced. And the weeds along Ventura's street medians grow in evidence of city's economic woes.

But in some cases, the signs of decline are not so easy to see, at least not yet. For instance, Ventura residents have mainly been unaware of the drastic cuts to a city service that is not about a book, a bus ride, or a perfectly landscaped street, but possibly about life, and death.

Ventura City Fire Department's $15 million operating budget has been slashed this fiscal year by $1 million, and projects an additional $1.3 million in cuts next year. And though these cuts have already forced the department to lay off administrative and staff positions, the city could be forced to close one of its six fire stations July 1.

This could result in increased response times, said Battalion Chief Donald Bartosh. Even though the department's primary service goal is to respond to 90 percent of emergency incidents within five minutes, this goal could be more difficult to meet with fewer engines and crews. Ultimately, the community could begin to feel the department's cut-backs if, for example, the 4-6 minute window for successfully treating heart-attack victims can't be met.

In Los Angeles, budget cuts have already led to increased response times. According to the Los Angeles Times at least three people have died since August in incidents where the nearest engine was out-of-service. Although fire officials couldn't say the situation would have been different if the closer unit had responded, they did acknowledge the importance of reduced response times.

Ventura looked to improve response times when Medic Engine 10 was born in 2007 after the city gave the fire department $435,000 to bolster public safety. And ME 10 did just that, reducing response times by an average of 10 percent, said Bartosh.

ME 10 was basically a full-time, fill-in for any of the six stations' engines that was either out-of-service, being used for regular, daily personnel training, or on an extended working incident.

Funding for the engine was approved before Ventura had to balance its budget by slashing $11 million in spending. So last March when the city's pinched wallet couldn't afford the additional expense, ME 10 was forced to operate only part-time, with the hope that there would be more permanent funding by the end of the year. But when the city didn't receive the necessary funds, ME 10 was parked and added to the economy's "victim list."

And that list just seems to be getting longer and longer.

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Posted Closing The Book On A Ventura Library to Dream Interruptedtag:www.kcet.org,2010:/socal/socal_connected_online/dream_interrupted//616.27332010-02-12T10:31:28Z2010-05-10T23:23:19ZTough economic times and voters determined to say "no" to any tax increase mean the doors close on a popular Ventura County library. Shannon Pencehttp://www.kcet.org/cgi-bin/mt/mt-cp.cgi?__mode=view&blog_id=616&id=147Stacks of books sit on a cart waiting to be re-shelved. A black and white sweater hangs neatly on the back of a chair, and fluorescent lights beam as though eagerly waiting to greet the day's first visitor. Except there hasn't been a visitor here in more than two months.

That's when the H.P. Wright Library in the city of Ventura shuttered its doors, one more victim to be added to the growing list of collateral damage created by the economic downturn.

Long one of the area's most-frequented libraries, it was unable to survive the city's $11 million in budget slashes, the county's reduced property tax revenue, and the state's severe cuts to library funding. To add insult to injury, even the local voters refused to fund H.P Wright when offered a chance via a recent ballot measure.

Ventura County's Public Library Foundation funds have been cut by 79 percent in the last 10 years, according to the California State Library. It's a slow motion collapse that began in the days of the Gray Davis administration and has recently accelerated.

"That says something about our commitment to kids, to books, to seniors, to job hunters, to our communities, and I think we are going to pay a huge price for it," said Ventura County Library Director, Jackie Griffin.

Two other libraries continue operating in the city of Ventura, which is still one more than the other cities in the county. So, H.P. Wright's closure might seem insignificant. But as the third most-visited library in the county system, concerned residents said its closure marks a painful and disproportionate loss.

Especially for Maureen Byrne and her three children, who have made visits to the neighborhood library routine stops in their weekly schedule.

"That was his favorite thing to do after school," said Maureen of her 12-year-old son Paul. "He would get his books. We would do his homework. It was so accessible."

When news of H.P. Wright's closure circulated in early 2009, it spurred a fund-raising campaign by the San Buenaventura's Friends of the Library. Byrnes was just one worried citizen among many who jumped on board. The group raised a hefty $120,000, which kept the library open an additional five months, said San Buenaventura Friends of the Library Vice President, Berta Steele.

The group's intention was to keep the library operating until a permanent funding solution arose, said Steele. Measure A, the city's half-cent sales tax increase that appeared on the November 2009 ballot, was one attempt to get additional money to fund H.P. Wright on a permanent basis, but it failed, only receiving 44 percent of the vote. The balloting forced economically-pressed voters to either save an important local institution or save themselves from a tax increase. They chose the latter and the library closed.

Now, it has been over two months since Byrne and her three children have visited a public library.

Unlike H.P. Wright, the other libraries are not on the way home from school, said Byrne. They're not easily accessible to a large portion of Ventura with a high population of children.

Now H.P. Wright patrons, many of whom were among Ventura's eastside residents, will have to manage the four-mile drive downtown to the E.P. Foster library. But the real concern is for those who will be unable to access any library, especially during financially tough times.